Document, document and document again. It is important to keep track of every piece of information you compile. With all of the genealogy information you are sure to uncover, keeping it organized will keep you from becoming frazzled or even worse, losing it! There are two basic forms that you can use to document your findings:

 

• Ascendant charts – begin with yourself and move back through the generations to those who came before you.

• Descendant charts – begin with yourself or other family member and list all descendants who came after you.

 

You will document family names, dates and places of the three major life events of each family member (birth, marriage, and death) on both of these forms. These create the foundation for your family history and will show any missing information. It will also form the outline of your family tree as a starting point of your genealogy research.